Galle
Light House
The Galle Lighthouse (also known as Pointe de Galle Light) is an onshore lighthouse in Galle, Sri Lanka and is operated and maintained by the Sri Lanka Ports Authority.[3] This is Sri Lanka’s oldest light station.
History
Philippus Baldaeus, a Dutch minister who served in the area in the late 1650s, detailed his observations of Galle Harbour, in his work, A True and Exact Description of the most Celebrated East-India Coasts of Malabar and Coromandel and also of the isle of Ceylon (1672), stating that there was an iron cannon placed on the ramparts and a lantern to guide the sailors on top of the 28 feet above sea level rock which jutted out into the sea.
The first lighthouse at Galle was built by the British in 1848.It was a 24.4 m-high (80 ft) iron lighthouse, constructed from cast-iron plates, imported from England, designed by British architect Alexander Gordon and erected by Messrs. Robinson, Engineers of Pimlico.The lighthouse, painted white, was located on the southwest bastion (the Utrecht Bastion) of Galle Fort on the western side of Galle Harbor. It had a fixed point light with prolate reflectors, which was visible for 19 km (12 mi). In July 1936 it was destroyed by fire.
The current 26.5 m-high (87 ft) concrete lighthouse was erected by the British about 100 m (330 ft) from the original site in 1939.The original light was furnished with a glass prism lens floating in a bath of mercury (to reduce friction) and was powered by a weight driven machine. The light station is within the walls of the ancient Galle Fort, a UNESCO World Heritage Site and well known tourist attraction. The lighthouse is strategically located at the southern end of the promontory, built approximately 6 m (20 ft) above the road level on the ramparts, at what is known as the Point Utrecht Bastion, giving it full view of any ships entering Galle Harbour.
Flag Rock
Origin Story
On the southwest coast of Sri Lanka, within the Bay of Galle, the Galle Fort sits as a major tourist attraction and UNESCO World Heritage Site. Built by the Portuguese in 1588 and then fortified by the Dutch in the 17th century, the Fort is a monument that has retained its appearance and cultural significance for over 400 years. On its southernmost tip, Flag Rock is a bastion from which the Dutch would signal approaching ships with flags to warn them of the dangerous rocks ahead – hence the name. Before the construction of the Galle Lighthouse, when visibility was too poor to use the flags, muskets would fire from nearby Pigeon Island to warn ships of the sharp rocks hidden under the surface of the water.
What You Can See Today
Today, Flag Rock is one of the most popular locations for visitors to catch the sunset from Galle Fort. To the west, the Galle Lighthouse rises out of the Utrecht Bastion while the historic landmarks of the Triton and Neptune Bastions sit to the east. Street food vendors sell spiced fruit from their carts to sunset-watchers, and although it is not recommended to visitors, it is not uncommon to witness locals leaping into the waters below. Rampart Street, which leads to Flag Rock and runs along the sea wall from the Neptune Bastion, is also home to a number of cafes that offer great views of the sunset.
